Jax, ‘American Idol’ Fan Favorite, Battling Cancer

American IdolSeason 14 standout Jax revealed that she's battling thyroid cancer in an interview with NJ 101.5released August 8. True to form, though, she's taking it all in stride.

"I'm sorry for not communicating with you guys sooner," she said, addressing fans. "I've been trying to deal with it with my family and figure out a way to actually come out with what's going on."

"It was very unexpected,” she told My Central Jerseyin a separate interview. “When you’re 20 years old, you have this Superman entitlement mentality, like you’re indestructible. And sometimes all it takes is God telling you it’s time to take a break for you to understand that you are most certainly not."

Jax said that she first suspected something was wrong when she noticed her energy levels plummeting. A music career had kept her busy and stressed, but there was suddenly additional fog, and one day, she felt a lump on her throat.

Doctors diagnosed Jax with Hashimoto's Disease and found 18 tumors on her thyroid, a dozen of which were cancerous. She's since had her thyroid removed, and is undergoing radiation.

"The first thing I did when I found out about the cancer was crack a joke,” she said. “My little bro knows me the best. The second they wheeled me out of surgery, he said, ‘Man! I tried to warn you the music business was cutthroat.’ Thank God I have people in my life that were there to help me deal with this when my reality finally clicked for me. I’m a tough guy, but I don’t think I have ever experienced anything scarier."

And fans are sending their well-wishes to Jax, who's already planning to start training for a November marathon to test her resolve. Doctors are optimistic she'll recover. Watch Jax's entire interview with NJ 101.5 above, which also includes recounting of how close friends and family reacted to the news, and how surgery has affected her singing voice.